Los Angeles Dodgers vs Colorado Rockies MLB Odds, Betting Preview 9/7/18

A huge contest within the National League West will take place this evening as the Los Angeles Dodgers grapple with the Colorado Rockies at Coors Field in Denver, Colorado. This is game one of a three-game series and has a start time of 8:40 pm ET. The Dodgers have taken seven of the 13 meetings between these teams this year.

Lines:  Los Angeles -145 … Over/Under 9.5

Pitching Matchup

Taking the hill for the Dodgers will be Clayton Kershaw and he has gone 6-5 with a 2.40 ERA in 21 starts on the year, including 3-3 with a 2.70 ERA in 12 starts on the road. In his career, he has gone 67-35 with a 2.69 ERA in 150 games (148 starts) and 28-10 with a 5.04 ERA in 54 games (52 starts) during Sept/ Oct. Kershaw is 21-7 with a 3.22 ERA in 38 career starts against the Rockies, including 9-4 with a 4.65 ERA in 20 starts here at Coors Field.

Getting the nod for the Rockies will be Jon Gray and he has gone 11-7 with a 4.70 ERA in 26 starts on the year, including 6-3 with a 4.56 ERA in 12 starts here at home. In his career, he has gone 18-7 with a 4.51 ERA in 39 starts here at Coors Field and 6-7 with a 4.10 ERA in 16 starts during Sept/ Oct, while against the Dodgers he has gone 3-3 with a 3.78 ERA in nine starts.   

A Look At The Dodgers

The Los Angeles Dodgers have been fighting all year to grab the top spot in the National League West. They had it briefly, but then they lost two of three games at home to the Mets and they are now 1.5 games behind these Rockies. This is a huge series for both teams. The Dodgers are still 9-3 in their last 12 games overall and they are hoping that a trip to Coors will get their offense back on track. The Dodgers have scored 29 runs in their last eight games, but we note that 11 of those runs came in one game. They have scored three runs or less in seven of those games.

Coors will help most offenses and the Dodgers are certainly hoping that is the case. They do have Kershaw on the mound, so they may not have to score a lot to win the game, but they would still like to get their offense going. Hyun Jin Ryu had a rough outing against the Mets on Wednesday night as he allowed five runs (three earned) on 11 hits in 6.0 innings of work. He is now 4-2 with a 2.47 ERA on the year. Max Muncy (32), and Cody Bellinger (22) both went deep in the game. The Dodgers have gone 37-28 on the road and they have averaged 5.22 rpg and have allowed 3.82 rpg in those games    

A Look At The Rockies

Not many saw the Colorado Rockies leading the National League West at this points of the year, but that is exactly where they are. The Rockies will enter this series with a 1.5 game lead over the Dodgers and a 2.5 game lead over the Diamondbacks and have a real shot at putting some distance between themselves and the Dodgers by playing well in this series. Colorado has been playing well overall as they come in having won their last five games in a row and they have outscored their foes 31-18 over that stretch. It will not be that easy in this game against Kershaw, who has been tough on them in his career.  

The Rockies have not been as good offensively this year as they have been in the past, but they are always a dangerous offensive team here at home. In their finale against the Giants, they won by a score of 5-3 and leading the attack was Trevor Story, who had three hits, three RBIs and scored three runs. All three hits were homers and he now has 31 on the year. Antonio Senzatela got a no-decision after allowing three ERs on nine hits and two walks in 5.0 innings of work. Harrison Musgrave grabbed the win and is now 2-3 with a 4.89 ERA on the year, while Adam Ottavino picked up his 6th save of the year.

Trends

Los Angeles is:

7-1 in their last 8 vs. National League West

21-8 in their last 29 during game 1 of a series

49-12 in Kershaw’s last 61 starts vs. National League West

The Over is 4-1 in their last 5 games following an off day

The Under is 10-1 in their last 11 when their opponent scores 5 runs or more in their previous game

Colorado is:

13-4 in their last 17 home games vs. a team with a winning road record

16-5 in their last 21 games vs. a left-handed starter

41-20 in their last 61 after scoring 5 runs or more in their previous game

The Over is 7-3 in Gray’s last 10 starts during game 1 of a series

The Under is 37-13-1 in their last 51 home games vs. a team with a winning record